


Hereditary

by GuineapigQueen, VibratingBlondeChild



Category: South Park
Genre: Fluff, Gnomes, M/M, Talk of mental illness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-16
Updated: 2021-02-16
Packaged: 2021-03-17 21:35:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29478552
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GuineapigQueen/pseuds/GuineapigQueen, https://archiveofourown.org/users/VibratingBlondeChild/pseuds/VibratingBlondeChild
Summary: "What's the matter sweetheart?" He asks her in a soft, warm voice.She looks a little startled to see him but relaxes  in his presence."Daddy?" She asks, voice shaky."Yeah, it's me. What's -ah- the matter baby?" He asks her, holding out his hand for her to grab.She does, she closes the space between them by launching into his arms, foregoing the hand holding all together."Nobody believes me" she says quietly, burying her face in Tweeks shoulder.
Relationships: Craig Tucker/Tweek Tweak
Comments: 19
Kudos: 80
Collections: jan 2021 - sp creek server does gnomes





	Hereditary

**Author's Note:**

> From Roxy: Hi everyone, I wrote this fic for the creek servers January challenge. Sorry it's so late. I hope it's still fun and enjoyable. I really enjoyed working with Vibrating Blonde Child, who has been so supportive despite my slowness getting this done, I hope you all enjoy her beautiful art. 
> 
> From VibratingBlondeChild: Hey guys! I'm so excited to be able to work with the lovely and talented Roxy.  
> I enjoyed this gnome prompt so much, and her story is beautiful and sweet. I hope you guys will love it as much as I have <3

Tweek wakes every day not quite being able to believe that this is his life. He loves his life but he never thought that it would be  _ his.  _ He never had plans for the future as a kid. It's kind of hard to when you're consumed by anxiety and mental illness. He used to be so paranoid. As a kid he saw gnomes everywhere, tampering with his things and just generally stressing him out. He didn't think he'd ever find healing, through both therapy and medication. He never thought he'd find the love of his life and marry them. And he never in a million years thought they'd have a family together, and be so happy. It blows his mind when he thinks about where he is now and where he came from.

Tweek hadn't really been sure if he wanted any kids, especially not any that shared his dna. It was Craig, his husband, who swayed him to this path. At first, Craig would just listen to him. He wouldn't blow off Tweeks anxious ramblings or mild delusions. He didn't make Tweek feel crazy, just seen and heard. It eventually gave him the courage to seek help as an adult. Medication opened up his world in ways he could never imagine. His parents had always told him as a kid that medication was bad and that it was the government trying to control you. So he'd never even wanted to try it. He only did after he had spent some time away from his parents and under Craig's supportive wing. 

Once Tweek began to learn how to manage his mental illness his life became much more ordinary. It was quiet and comfortable, everything Tweek had ever wanted but had been unwell to ever achieve. He could build a career he lives properly, build his and Craig's home life and then… kids. That came next. They'd had a great wedding. Lots of time as both a young couple and a married couple. Built up careers, bought a house and made it their own. Tweek hadn't realised he wanted kids until they got to this point. And once he realized the house just seemed empty after that. 

After talking together they both came to the decision that yes, it was time. They ended up deciding to pursue surrogacy, Craig pushed for that avenue. Tweek wasn't sure he could take the heartbreak of adoption when things fall through. Craig pushed because he wanted their baby to be biologically  _ Tweek's.  _ Tweek couldn't understand why. He has crappy genetics. His brain needs all these pills just to function. Surely Craig wants their kid to inherit his own stable personality. 

Craig doesn't. He wants Tweek's baby. He wants to carry around their kid, knowing their kid looks like Tweek. It's really romantic, and well, it swayed Tweek. He agreed, despite his doubts. 

That's how their oldests, Piper was born. She's their only kid who is biologically Tweek's. Not that it matters to Tweek at all. But it's obvious when compared to her siblings. When they decided to add to their family Tweek spun the same argument back on Craig, and that their second child should be biologically Craig's. For their third, honestly, they flipped a coin. Craig won and their third shares his DNA as well. Secretly, Tweek likes ot better this eay. He thinks his genetics are weaker than Craig's and if he had had it his way all the kids would've been Craig's biologically. But no matter their genetic parentage, he loves them all just the same.

Piper does sort of stick out a little though. She looks like Tweek a lot, her biological mom was also fair like Tweek. She came out with threadbare blonde hair and a carbon copy of Tweeks eyes. Tweek just hopes she doesn't feel too different to her siblings as they both have darker hair and eyes and both look alike. When out together in public, the younger two look very much like siblings but Piper looks quite different to them. It all comes with having a blended family, they're both working on it but that doesn't stop Tweek from worrying anyway. As a parent always does. 

—

Tweek isn't sure if his eldest daughter is going through some kind of phase, or if he needs to intervene. She's been kind of cagey, unwilling to talk and seemingly on edge. It reminds Tweek of himself at that age. And that's truly worrying for him, considering he had a very serious paediatric mental illness. He's so worried that it's genetic and he's unwittingly passed it on to her. 

He had these anxieties when Craig insisted on using his genetic material. He always worries that Piper will just struggle all her life and it will be all his fault. He knows logically that this probably won't be the case, considering he manages to have a happy life where he functions and is well. Even if she inherits his mental illnesses he knows what to look for, he's been through it and can help her through it. But still, his dad guilt is real. He thinks that maybe it was wrong of him to even chance putting her through it, but also, if he hadn't he wouldn't have her. And Tweek loves her so much, he wouldn't take her back. 

"Do you think she's beginning to show  _ -nnn-  _ signs?" Tweek asks Craig after all the kids have gone to bed. 

"I think you're obsessing, and that's not good for you or for her" Craig replies, ever rational.

"I know" Tweek sighs "I'm just hypervigilant I guess. I don't want her  _ -ah- _ living with what I did. The anxiety is so crippling… I want her to have a childhood."

"She does'' Craig assures him. "I am a little concerned that she's not letting us in, but she's in school now, looking to get more independent. I think if we just watch her and see how this plays out… we can always step in if it gets worse."

"I guess… I guess I just feel guilty. If she had your DNA she might not  _ -hnn-  _ have had to experience this at all" Tweek admits.

"First things first, we don't even know if she's experiencing what you did… and you're feeding into one another's anxiety by obsessing" Craig tells Tweek calmly "she could just be being a regular kid, let it play out."

"Okay" Tweek sighs "I'll try to let it go for now."

"Good honey" Craig smiles "and remember, if she had my DNA, not yours then she wouldn't be  _ her.  _ She'd be another kid, and personally, I like her exactly how she is." 

"You're right" Tweek replies "I'm sorry. I just get worked  _ -nghh- _ up sometimes."

"It's okay babe" Craig replies "we all have parent-guilt. It's natural, unfortunately. I have my own stuff I agonize over too." 

"It kinda sucks that it's such a normal thing, parent-guilt" Tweek says regretfully.

"I know" Craig replies "but at least that shows we care deeply about our kids. Hopefully they'll grow up knowing that."

"That makes me feel a little better," Tweek sighs. "We should probably use the rest of the night to have  _ -hnn- _ some couple time."

"I am way too exhausted to do anything sexy" Craig sighs.

"I know, I wasn't insinuating that… I never thought I'd hear those words coming out of your  _ -ah-  _ mouth though" Tweek jokes.

"When did we get so old" Craig groans.

"Probably somewhere between the marriage and  _ -gah-  _ the kids" Tweek laughs.

—

Tweek wakes up to the sound of faint footsteps and shuffling. His parenting instincts perk up instantly, he listens carefully to make sure it's one of the kids and not some intruder. He is relieved as the steps aren't heavy enough to be a grown up, it's definitely one of the kids. Probably going through the bathroom shuffle. Tweek listens in anyway, just to make sure the kid in question isn't doing anything they shouldn't be. 

It's probably an overprotective parent thing but Tweek can tell when they're trying to get away with something. He listens hard, the footsteps shuffle a little more… then a whimper and maybe… a sob? Tweek sits upright straight away, his parenting instincts going crazy. He leaps out of bed, not worrying about waking Craig. He scurries into the hallway, feeling his way through the darkness with muscle memory alone. He's out there quicker than his eyes can adjust to the dark but when they do he realises that the distress sounds were coming from Piper. She's huddled up in the hallway, in her pyjamas. Looking so small and vulnerable. 

"What's the matter sweetheart?" He asks her in a soft, warm voice. 

She looks a little startled to see him but relaxes in his presence. 

"Daddy?" She asks, voice shaky.

"Yeah, it's me. What's  _ -ah-  _ the matter baby?" He asks her, holding out his hand for her to grab. 

She does, she closes the space between them by launching into his arms, foregoing the hand holding all together. 

"Nobody believes me" she says quietly, burying her face in Tweeks shoulder.

"What does  _ -nnn- _ nobody believe?" He asks, rubbing her back "I can't believe you if you don't tell me."

"The gnomes" she whispers, like if she says it any louder she will cause them to appear. 

Tweek is taken aback, holding her a little tighter. He never mentioned the gnomes in front of her, he never tried to fill her head with these stories or concepts. She couldn't have got this from him. 

"What gnomes?" he asks her, trying to keep his cool. He is the adult after all. 

"I see them in my room sometimes… they scare me… I tried to tell Chloe but she said I was lying" Piper explains, sounding almost like she might start crying towards the end of her sentence. 

"Hey, baby" Tweek comforts her "I  _ -hnng-  _ believe you okay." 

"I'm scared of them" she repeats.

Tweek sees an opportunity he never got as a child. He sees himself, scared, alone and dismissed by all the adults in his life. So he decides to be the adult he so desperately wished for at that age, for Piper. Maybe she won't be so afraid if Tweek validates her and doesn't make her feel like some kind of freak.

Tweek hated not being believed as a child. The way the adults in his life dismissed him or even laughed at him. Considered him either attention seeking or completely crazy. It hurt. He wants to be a safe person for his kids. No matter what the problem is, whether they're in trouble or it is something as outlandish as seeing gnomes. Tweek wants them all to know they can come to him and he will believe them. And he will protect them.

He can hear more footsteps now. Tiny ones along with Craig’s shuffling.

“Why does she get to be out of bed and we can’t?” He hears Chloe whisper. She’s hushed by a sharp “shh!” From Craig. Then he hears small voices giggling. While normally he’d find this cute he can see it’s just distressing Piper more. 

"I'm here with you" he comforts her "I'll sit with you until you fall asleep. I'll  _ -hnn- _ guard your room."

"Okay" she says "I'll go back to bed if you stay with me."

And Tweek does. He stays all night, falling asleep himself. It's not ideal, but he feels better knowing that his daughter felt safe.

—

“She said she  _ -gah-  _ saw them” Tweek tells Craig “no prompting from me. I just asked why she was out of bed. She’s afraid of them, Craig.”

Craig sighs “I don’t believe in being haunted by gnomes but… I do know that it felt real to you and I’m sure it feels just as real to Piper” he stops to take a breath and collect his thoughts “you probably know how to handle this better than me.”

“I don’t know, not really” Tweek admits “when I was a kid nobody helped or  _ -ah-  _ comforted me. I didn’t have a solution. All I know is I want to be someone who  _ -nghh- _ validates her. Acknowledges that her fear is real and that her feelings are serious and important.”

“I can do that” Craig nods “what was it like for you… when you saw them?” He broaches the topic cautiously, knowing Tweek doesn’t like to relive those memories “did they scare you?”

Tweek considers this, the gnomes were a source of shame for him. Nobody believed him and everyone thought he was crazy. He was treated like he was worthless because “oh that kids nuts, don’t listen to what he says.” 

“At first” he replies “but I sort of just learned to live with them. They never tried to harm me I just caught  _ -hnn-  _ glimpses of them sometimes” Tweek tells him.'' What upset me more was that nobody believed me and brushed me off. And kept using it as an excuse to  _ -gah-  _ brush off my thoughts and opinions even into adulthood.”

“Well… maybe the secret is learning to live with them” Craig suggests, his eyebrows quirking upwards in that way they always do when he is thinking of something. Tweek hopes a good idea will overtake him. Tweek waits patiently for Craig to speak again.

“What if you show her they’re harmless” Craig suggests “do like, a stakeout or something. Make it fun, like a special thing or something… and once she’s gotten used to the presence of them, maybe if we just just keep validating and supporting her we can get her through this. If she’s still feeling worried or paranoid when she’s older we can go down a more therapeutic route.”

“That could work, I’ll just monitor her I guess… let her know I understand what she’s going through. Once she’s more at peace with seeing the gnomes, maybe  _ -nnn- _ she’ll feel better” he agrees.

He’s unsure but she’s only seven years old, he doesn’t think that antipsychotics are something he wants to be trying on a little kid. Not unless she’s completely terrified and miserable. Not unless there’s no other option.

“I got the idea from this article I read” Craig explains “don’t hate me but, it was on schizophrenia.”

“Why would I hate you?” Tweek asks.

“I just don’t want you to think I’m writing you, or our daughter off as just crazy. I’m not, even if I believe what you experienced is hallucinations, I believe they are very real to you both” he replies, Tweek honestly appreciates the respect.

“Maybe it is hallucinations, I don’t know. But you’re right, it does feel real and it makes me feel so much better when you  _ -ah-  _ validate it” Tweek tells him, he wants to Craig to know his consideration is appreciated.

“Well, I was reading this article and it was saying that preliminary studies were showing that societal stigma plays a huge role in how schizophrenics interpret and interact with their hallucinations. So our society demonises them and shame warps the voices into something unpleasant and scary. Something that terrorises, whereas some tribes in Africa have a very positive outlook towards schizophrenia and mental illness. They see it more like a special ability and the individuals are actually praised. Individuals in these societies had a higher incidence of positive interactions with the voices they heard and hallucinations they saw. Voices they could converse with positively and that didn’t put them down or terrorise them. I sort of just applied that idea here, on a smaller scale” Craig explains to him. Tweek loves when Craig gets all science-y.

“That kind of makes me feel better in a way… knowing that how we  _ -hnng- _ behave can maybe help her. If she does end up inheriting my illness” Tweek says.

“Let’s make her feel special, and when she’s feeling better we can make it up to the other two kids in some way” Craig suggests.

"We’ve got this” Tweek agrees, glad that he married, and is raising children with, someone who compliments him so well. 

—

Tweek's only real solution is time. He spends time with her, they start a weekly gnome hunt - just Tweek and Piper. 

At first Tweek feels a little silly and Piper is nervous. She's apprehensive, scared even and clings onto Tweek for support. Tweek holds her steady through it, knowing the first time will be the hardest. 

It takes a few more times for her to ease, their daddy-daughter sleepover nights becoming more of an exciting treat than something to worry about. While the gnomes were a catalyst, it becomes less and less about them. 

It's becoming a tradition now and Tweek hopes this means that Piper is learning to live with them. That they're nothing to fear. 

It's the other two that Tweek is more worried about. 

With Piper getting all this extra attention, Tweek thinks the other two kids are feeling left out. He can't blame them, it's hard when one child has very prevalent special needs and you need to balance the needs of three. Sometimes the other children get neglected while the parents try to avert a crisis and it's not fair on anyone.

"I do think it's a problem" Craig agrees when Tweek brings up his concerns.

"I'm not sure how to fix it," Tweek replies. "I wanted to make sure Piper didn't end up in a  _ -gah-  _ crisis and just sort of let things fall to the wayside."

"I've been trying to do stuff with them" Craig sighs "but it's not the same. They miss you I think." 

"I definitely need to think of some way to work it out so my time is spent  _ -hnn-  _ equally. I don't want them to feel divided or like I have favourites" Tweek frowns, concerned. 

"I think we'll get it, there's no playbook for this" Craig reminds him. 

"That's true, when we signed up to be parents we agreed to love them no matter  _ -ah- _ what" Tweek resolves. 

"The kids come first, no matter what challenges we face as a family" Craig agrees, clutching on to Tweek's hand steadily. 

—

Before they can find a solution the situation boils over. It comes to a head the morning before a gnome hunt is to take place for Tweek and Piper later that evening.

Tweek is trying to prepare breakfast and get all the kids ready for the day. It's a weekend, so they don't have to get the kids ready for school or daycare but still, Tweek wants them to be active throughout the day. He's thinking he might take them to the park, or at least a walk into town. He doesn't want them to be the kind of kids that play video games all day. Craig is a little more lax on that side, he played video games growing up and doesn't see the harm but Tweek is firm. Screentime is restricted and outdoor play is encouraged. Tweek is happy to let them sit down and watch a movie or play a game with Craig if they have at least one outing together beforehand. 

"Gnome hunts are stupid!" Chloe, their middle daughter, says suddenly. Tweek realises that Piper must have been talking about her plans to her siblings. 

"No they aren't!" Piper shoots back, "they're fun!"

"They're dumb! You just make up that you can see them!" She replies angrily. 

"Do not!" Piper glares "they're real!"

"You make them up so daddy will stay up late with you… you're a liar!" Chloe accuses spitefully.

"I am not!" Piper shrieks and runs out of the room, leaving her untouched cereal at the table.

Tweek makes a move to follow her, but Craig gestures to Chloe. Tweek gets it, he lets Craig go after Piper while he sits opposite his clearly jealous middle child. 

"Chloe" he says sternly "that was nasty."

"It's true" she says "she's making it up so you'll do stuff with her."

"Why do you  _ -ah- _ think that?" Tweek asks.

"Because I've never seen a gnome," she says.

"Just because you can't see something doesn't mean it isn't  _ -nnn-  _ real to someone else" Tweek tries to explain.

"It's not fair! She gets to stay up late and I don't!" Chloe protests. 

"Well, we could go find your sister, apologise, and ask nicely if you and  _ -nghh- _ Galen can join in too?" Tweek suggests. 

"She won't let me now that I yelled at her" Chloe says sadly, clearly regretting her words.

"I think you'd be surprised what you might get if you ask nicely. Just be open minded to things your sister might see differently to you" he reminds her.

"Okay" Chloe says "I'll ask her."

—

Piper says yes. Tweek knew she would, she's a kind hearted kid. And really, she just wants to fit in, having her siblings accept her and ask to join in is all she really wanted.

"I'm sorry for saying you lied" Chloe tells her sister sheepishly. 

"It's okay, I'm sorry you felt left out" Piper replies "you can come on the gnome hunt tonight if you like."

"I would," Chloe says, smiling.

"Me too!" Galen pipes up, he can't say many words, but me is a big one.

Both Chloe and Piper giggle, but they're good big sisters.

"You too," Piper says, smiling at her baby brother. 

So the gnome hunt is back on. When the time finally comes Piper takes charge, leaving Tweek and Craig both taking a backseat. 

"You know, I could get used to this" Craig says to Tweek "this could be our family's  _ thing." _

"That's  _ -hnn-  _ kind of cute," Tweek says, taking his husband's hand "look at our kids, all playing together nicely."

Piper is showing her siblings all her favorite places to look, leading the hunt. Both Galen and Chloe follow her and listen intently. 

"I'm just so happy they're  _ -ah- _ supporting her, well, each other" Tweek gushes.

"We lucked out, we got good kids but we also are raising them well" Craig remarks "I'm proud of them all."

"Me too" Tweek agrees, his heart fit to burst with happiness.

**Author's Note:**

> My tumblr is blesspastacraig if you wanna be friends :)  
> also follow vibratingblondechild on tumblr for more gorgeous art!


End file.
